I Will Find You
by StatsGrandma57
Summary: Leia's search for Han after Boba Fett takes Han away. Thanks to my incredible beta, 2Old4This2 for all the work :) Chapter 3 completes this story :)
1. Chapter 1

I WILL FIND YOU

Leia was a woman on a mission. But this was to be no ordinary mission.

She'd secured permission to leave for however long it took to find Han Solo. Mon Mothma had not been pleased, but General Rieekan allowed it. For reasons of his own, the general had always respected Han, and despite the younger man's unwillingness to take a commission, he seemed to have a fondness for Han. While rumors couldn't be confirmed, and they ran rampant throughout the Rebel bases, it had been hypothesized that Rieekan had not been unlike Han in his younger years.

Once permission was granted, however, she had to act quickly. She had to be ready to get on a supply transport less than a day after permission had been granted to her, and to say she lacked a plan was putting it mildly.

For the past five months, she'd barely slept and on the rare occasions that she did, it was due to her crying herself to that state. She dreaded being alone in her quarters, preferring to stay up in the command center long after her watch had ended. She looked so drawn that Luke had verbalized his worries to her. Leia insisted she wasn't sick.

Just lovesick, she told herself, something she vowed she'd never be. Leia had never planned on falling in love, and as for falling in love during wartime, that was as far out of her expectations as a distant galaxy. Well, not before she met Han Solo.

For three years, she'd fought her feelings about him nonstop, right along with fighting with him. She told herself she could not afford to be in love, not when the Alliance was in such desperate shape. So many lives had been lost along with too many lost battles, and they were definitely on the defensive at this point in time.

And yet, in a moment of clarity the night before, when she'd been ordered to leave the command center by Rieekan, she realized what she had to do. No more tears. This was the time for action. For the first time in months, she'd had a solid night of sleep. But now she was wide awake, on the transport, and had to do some rapid strategic planning.

The Hutts were scattered throughout the galaxy, and they were secretive as to their locations. Luke had suggested starting in Mos Eisley on Tatooine. He'd mentioned a cantina with a small sign over the door that simply read 'Cantina.' To Leia, it was thin gruel, but she had to start somewhere, even if it was at the far reaches of the Outer Rim territories. The transport was stopping at New Plympto, a planet hospitable to the Rebellion, for ordnance and supplies. The denizens of New Plympto had a long history of separatism, long before the Empire; the natives were not human and thus exposed to heavy oppression at many points in their history. They had signed on early to be part of the Rebel Alliance. Friendly, yes, but likely not very helpful.

And there was the issue of disguise. She was one of the most visible faces of the Alliance, and she was going to have to come up with something better than the cloak Luke had let her borrow. Granted, it covered her face, but sooner or later, more likely sooner, she was going to be discovered and if that happened, it wasn't going to end well.

Leia refused to allow herself the possibility of Han being dead. If he was, surely Luke would have felt it, and Luke assured her that he was getting no such Force sensations to that effect. Of course, he was a new Jedi knight, and he did mention that her mileage may vary, but while he could feel Han being trapped, he didn't feel death.

It wasn't a lot to go on, but it was something.

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Leia was surprised, and not slightly alarmed, that she'd fallen asleep on the transport. One of the women from the base, Emer, had to shake her awake. She didn't know Emer well, but she did an important job: she was an expert on ordnance and not only that, she was well skilled in negotiating prices for it. She had brought her two assistants, young men who looked as if they didn't need to shave yet.

"Your Highness, are you all right?" the woman asked her quietly.

"I'm fine, thank you," Leia said, yawning. "Just tired." Nothing unusual about that; conversation on the base often revolved around how little sleep they could function on.

"Tell me about it," Emer said as they exited, producing their ID chits. "What supplies are you responsible for?"

Leia hesitated. Perhaps the Rogues hadn't found out yet.

"I'm...not on supply detail this time. I'm...going on to my next destination."

"Well, good luck," Emer said gently. As a weapons dealer, she knew a great deal about the art of discretion.

"Thank you," Leia said, hurrying away from the crowd. Getting involved in any other conversations was not something she wanted to do. Getting to Tatooine was going to be complicated enough, and the fewer questions she had to ask, the better.

The spaceport was twenty-two kilometers from Phemys, the capital city. It doubled for both military and civilian transport. The likelihood of finding a direct transport to Tatooine was unlikely. Leia decided that her best bet was to take a transport to one of the Core Worlds that bordered on the Inner Rim. Asking for a direct transport to the Outer Rim, at least from Phemys, was going to be memorable and thus suspicious.

Luke had enlightened her about Tatooine. None of his descriptions were in the least bit flattering. He said it was hot, sandy, ugly, and lawless - and that those were its good points.

But first, she had to find a disguise, something that would take her farther. The floor length cloak with its ample hood would only take her so far.

And, for the first time in months, Leia discovered that she was very, very hungry. New Plympto, with its huge variety of sentients in all shapes, sizes and colors, was famous for its large number of ethnic restaurants. The aroma arising from the food courts in the nearby terminals was the first time since Han Solo had made her soup, juice and a hot buttered Corellian rum that she had any interest in food. Of course, the food on base was bland, colorless and tasteless. It was meant to provide sustenance, and that was about it. Everyone complained about the food, but wars were expensive, and food was not at the top of the list. Obviously, everyone had to eat, but it had to be done as inexpensively as possible. Fine cooks existed among the Alliance, but their efforts couldn't overcome the poor materials, though they kept trying.

There were a few Alderaanian restaurants nearby, but Leia chose not to visit them; too obvious. The royal family, despite their demise of all but Leia, were still venerated by displaced Alderaanians. She considered Corellian, but didn't think her stomach could handle the spices and oil of Han's home cuisine. She let her nose guide her and found a nondescript place, full of people and shouting cooks and a very pleasing aroma. Patrons were invited to seat themselves anywhere they found an opening, which made it a bit of a free for all, but Leia found it comforting. She browsed through the tattered menu, and then set it in a retrieval slot so that a server would make his or her way to the table to take her order. She was shocked that one appeared right as she was handling the menu. The place was chaotic, but apparently it was an organized chaos. Not only did the server arrive promptly, but the food as well. The stew she'd chosen was simple but delicious, with a warm spiced bread on the side. A large iced kaf made the meal complete, and she found that it had helped to clear her head, which for so long had felt muzzy from worry and exhaustion.

She scanned the crowd, trying to get ideas regarding a disguise. She could, of course, color her hair and apply cosmetics with a trowel, which vaguely amused her because Han liked women to look natural. Leia rarely wore cosmetics other than lip balm and Han had been vocal about his appreciation for that.

And it would not disguise the fact that she was female. She was also very short. What she needed was something that, despite her size, would not make her sex obvious and would conceal her face. She considered for a moment, with some amusement, disguising herself as a Wookiee. The problem was that even young Wookiee children surpassed her in height, and would certainly not be allowed outside of the family until the age of majority. She was trying to picture Chewie's expression had she suggested it to him, and could hear his laughter, loud and strong. She missed him terribly.

Leia thought about Chewie and Lando. She was still angry with Lando. He'd promised to notify Luke when he and Chewie located Lando. There'd been no word.

All she had was Luke's Force sense.

Having finished her meal, she stepped out into one of the causeways that connected the various dining and shopping establishments peppering the area. As she moved out of the more populated areas, things became considerably seedier and she hastened her step. She wasn't afraid of going into hostile territory; her blaster pistol had become so much a part of her that she wondered what it would be like to not carry it everywhere once the war ended.

If it ever ended.

She wasn't going to think about that right now. She needed to remain alert. There were a number of noisy arguments taking place inside and outside of the various dive drinking establishments that littered this area. She only cared about being able to stay out of the line of fire. Leia had learned long ago that a combination of intoxicants and firearms was too often lethal. She kept her one hand on her blaster as she quietly made her way through.

At one alleyway that crossed her path, she observed a blonde, buxom woman in a heated discussion with what was most likely a bounty hunter. Both had their weapons drawn. The blonde clearly had the advantage and moments later, the bounty hunter tumbled to the ground. She quickly spun on her heel and noticed Leia. Leia's hand was on her weapon but not drawn outside of the cloak. The woman's hand reached out and grabbed Leia's shoulder harshly.

"You didn't see anything, do you understand?" the blonde woman snarled at her.

An idea leapt into Leia's head. "I didn't see anything on one condition," she hissed quietly.

"Oh, and what would that be? Maybe I should just make sure you can never say anything," Buxom Blonde said in a low, menacing voice.

"All I want is the bounty hunter's armor," Leia said evenly.

The blonde found this to be hilarious. "You want the bounty hunter's armor. Whatever for?"

"That's not for you to know, and I am armed," Leia responded.

The blonde threw back her head and laughed. "Have at it. Boushh isn't in any condition to complain."

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So now she was to be a bounty hunter, Leia thought wryly. Fortunately, Boushh had carried ID, and no one was the wiser as she moved from planet to planet. Leia was still careful; it might be known among other bounty hunters what Boushh's fate was. Leia knew that among smugglers, there was honor such as there was among thieves, but from all indications, that was not the case for bounty hunters, who'd do each other in if they could get a credit out of it.

There was still no word from Lando, or Chewie, or Luke.

She was, after making a number of connections, finally in Mos Eisley Spaceport. Luke had advised her that this was where she should go. He mentioned something about it being less than completely safe. At this point, her personal safety was the last thing on her mind. One thing about traveling as a bounty hunter: you were generally granted a wide berth. Nearly everyone, including most varieties of criminals, regarded bounty hunters with disgust.

It made traveling much easier for Leia. She appreciated that no one would bother her.

But it would also make locating the cantina that much harder.

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	2. Chapter 2

I WILL FIND YOU

Chapter 2

Leia discovered that posing as a bounty hunter was somewhat problematic, but it afforded some advantages as well. Generally, the population at large gave a wide berth to bounty hunters, as if by getting to close to one it would poison them, and in certain cases, they'd be correct. Leia wouldn't call it respect, but it wasn't the worst position to be in. She'd had to figure out which transports to which destinations would be least likely to dispense with her, or rather, dispense with Boushh; bounty hunters were not officially permitted in a number of places, but not many wanted to deal with them. This was as true for Stormtroopers as it was for Rebels.

Now that she was in Mos Eisley, she was nervous. Not about standing out - she'd have stuck out more in her Rebel Alliance garb. She observed a number of sentients who appeared to be bounty hunters and other affiliated scum; there was no shortage of them.

What was amazing was just how many sentients occupied Mos Eisley. It was a rabbit warren of sandstone and clay buildings, dried into permanent dwellings by the relentless heat. That was, Leia decided, absolutely one of the drawbacks of being clad in armor. The head mask was particularly uncomfortable; the sweat rolled down her face. But she dared not take it off in anywhere someone might see. Getting the armor back on after showering was enough of a challenge. She had to take all meals in private; she had no idea what Boushh ate or how he did it.

She swore she would burn the armor once she found Han.

Milling about Mos Eisley was mind numbing and more than a little irritating; it was very crowded, which allowed her to blend in, but it was making the search for a tavern with only the word 'cantina' marking the entrance. There were many drinking establishments. Some were polite enough to give their names at the entryways, but not everyone did, so process of elimination was going to be laborious. And smelly. With more species present than Leia could name, there were some that were fairly malodorous, either by the characteristics of a particular one, or just plain lack of sanitation.

The twin suns of Tatooine began to sink low in the sky, but to Leia's surprise, there was no relief from the high temperatures of the daylight hours. And she had yet to find her destination.

Leia was nearly ready to find somewhere she could spend the night when she stumbled across a nondescript building with sentients of all kinds heading inside.

There was a small sign with even smaller print that read 'Cantina.' Still uncertain as to whether this was the place she needed to be, she followed down the stairs and inside. There was a very large bar and many tables, some of which were set up to give its occupants privacy. The air was smoky, the noise level nearly intolerable. In a way, she felt more secure in these conditions.

I'm not in Alderaan anymore, she said to herself.

Her comm vibrated. She was going to need to look at it, but she had to admit that she was extremely thirsty, and there appeared to be ways for any and all in the bar to imbibe. She'd order her drink.

The bar was manned by an agile woman who seemed to be able to multitask over several orders of magnitude.

"Boushh! Long time no see," the woman greeted her as she sat down. "I can't say I've missed you." She produced a beverage and set it on the bar. "You want to run a tab?"

One of the best features of Boushh's armor was the voice synthesizer. No one would be able to claim to have identified Leia by voice.

She was tempted to say no, but she got the impression that Boushh would have done so. "Yes," she said to the woman. Leia was trying to remember if Luke or Han had mentioned her name, but nothing came to mind.

The drink was not as horrible as she'd anticipated. It was very sour, but there was a hint of sweet fruit in it. She sipped it, not knowing how potent the libation would be. She couldn't afford intoxication and she also wanted to avoid any confrontations. The place was rife with drunks, and it appeared that a number of them had discovered who they were spending the night with.

The other attribute her armor shared was enhanced hearing. It wasn't particularly good at filtering, but she was able to listen to some of the conversations in the place. She smiled at the thought of what her mother would say, with her daughter dressed up like the scum of the galaxy and trying to find out where her smuggler lover was. And Leia would have paid to bring her three crazy aunts here-they'd have the vapors.

But they had long been blasted into space dust. Alderaan had ceased to exist on that horrible day, the blackest day in her life...at least until Han had been frozen in carbonite and handed over to Boba Fett.

She'd never hated anyone more, and that included Lando.

Lando. Where the hells was he? He had said he'd get in contact with her, but so far, nothing. All the months of waiting and worrying and wondering. She'd been a fool to trust him. He'd probably stopped looking for Han a long time ago.

She then remembered she'd received a comm. Time to look at it.

It was Luke, on a secure channel. She hoped she could send a secure response from the cantina; she didn't need to draw attention to herself. There were plenty of patrons on their comm units, so she guessed that at least some frequencies were available.

His message read: 'Jabba's palace fifty-four kilometers west of Mos Eisley. Only set of buildings in the area. Have sent the droids.'

It wasn't a lot, and it was late, but Leia was going to get a transport to Jabba's palace at this godsforsaken hour if she had to pay a fortune for it. She couldn't let Han suffer a moment longer than he had.

Leia had read a little bit on hibernation sickness, and while most of its victims survived, sometimes they suffered permanent brain damage. Loss of hearing or vision was common but generally dissipated within a day or two. High fevers were not unheard of but in most species were temporary and easily treated with common medications. While death was not common, insanity was more so.

Leia refused to let her mind travel in that direction. Han was the toughest, coolest, and bravest man she'd ever met. She remembered all too well his expression as he was sunk into the freezing chamber. He wasn't worried for himself. He was worried about her.

Luke said he was alive. And she knew he wouldn't say something like that unless he was certain. Of course, that could change in a moment. But Chewie had sent the message, and that meant he was near Han.

What she hadn't been aware of was the clan system of the Hutts. They all competed against each other, and profit was the name of the game. Sometimes competition resulted in blood. She just hoped she had the right Hutt. Somehow, appearing in front of the wrong one could be disastrous, to say the least. But Luke seemed to have been doing applying his Force sense and maybe consulting a few databases. Leia had relied on word of mouth. She wanted to leave as few traces as possible.

It was not difficult to find a transport, but one that was willing to take her all the way to Jabba's was far more of a problem. Fortunately, she was in the guise of a bounty hunter, and all she had to do was draw a weapon, and finally she found someone nervous enough about that who'd take her the fifty-four kilometers, and she had promised to pay him double. Credits didn't talk, she said to herself. They swore. Loudly.

The dense population of sordid Mos Eisley gave way to barren stretches of yellow desert sand. This made Leia a bit uncomfortable; having grown up in Aldera, the capital city of Alderaan, had accustomed her to being around many sentients. And while the silence of forests or lakes were welcome, this was nothing but an eerie sort of one, the kind that made you think attackers were lurking in the darkness. Leia was grateful that no one could see her face. She was highly skilled at staying cool in stressful situations, but nothing - not battles, not asteroids, not the hyperdrive's constant failure - had prepared her for this sort of experience. It wasn't so much the danger that left her unprepared, though.

It was the experience of being in love that had her at such loose ends. Leia had never contemplated it happening to her. But then again, she'd never met a man like Han. He had a hypnotic power over her that terrified her in the beginning.

And now, she could not imagine living without him. Memories of their first kiss, the first time they made love, the last kiss before Han was cast into the pit...they rushed at her like warm, clear water. His soft lips, strong hands, silky body hair, all of what he was, what he felt like around her, next to her, inside of her, were bringing tears to her eyes.

Think clearly, she warned herself. That's what'll get Han back to you.

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Leia was grateful for a full moon. Other than the lights on the hovercab, it was dark as far as a human eye could see.

The driver came upon a series of windowless buildings. Or, if there were windows, they were dark. It was hardly welcoming. Leia just hoped she was at the right place. She handed the credit chits to the driver and stepped outside. The night air wasn't much cooler than the daytime.

She comm'd Luke one word, 'arrived.'

It was an interminably long time before she received a response. Whether it had been seconds, minutes or hours was hard to tell.

Finally, she could feel the comm vibrate. 'Wait for Lando. In guard uniform.'

'Tell him Boushh the bounty hunter,' was her response. She was extremely skeptical on that account; the compound was huge and the darkness held foreboding. 'I've got a bad feeling about this,' she told herself. She half wished she'd told the driver to stick around, but that wasn't how bounty hunters operated.

Leia hoped she wasn't going to have to pretend for much longer. All she wanted to do was find Han, release him from the carbonite, and get the hells out. She wanted the months of waiting and worrying to be over as quickly as possible. She wanted to take Han to a safe place where he could recover from being encased, where she could hold him, tell him things were going to be all right. The only thing that kept her fear at bay was to think about Han.

The night dragged on and on. Leia was tired, hot, sore, hungry and thirsty. But she had a mission to complete, and this was hardly the first time, and she was hardly the first person, to suffer that sort of discomfort. She had to save Han, and she didn't care what she had to do to reach that end.

Love had never been part of her plans, but fate had had other ideas.

Leia asked herself if she'd do it again. The answer was easy: a thousand times over.

"Leia?" a voice called out in a near whisper.

She looked up and there was a fully armored guard standing before her.

"Lando?" she asked, trying not to show that she was anything other than calm.

"Oh, thank the gods," Lando said. "Luke said your name was Boushh. While we're here, call me Tamtel Skreej."

"Is Han alive?"

"He's alive, still in perfect hibernation. What you're going to do first is bargain for Chewie."

"Where is Chewie?" Leia demanded.

"In one of the dungeons. I have to get back; everyone's pretty much passed out from the party last night, but Jabba wakes up easily and it's gonna be pretty obvious I'm not there."

"So what should I do?" Leia said quietly.

"Enter through the front portal as soon as it's light, in about twenty minutes." The suns were barely showing themselves above the horizon. "Bounty hunters get a pretty good welcome here."

"How nice," Leia said acerbically. "Let me guess: Boba Fett's a regular."

"Han may have been his largest bounty, but he's hardly the only one. Just wait a little longer. I'll be looking for you." Lando vanished quickly.

Maybe, Leia thought with some amusement, she could kill Boba Fett. It might actually be fun.


	3. Chapter 3

I WILL FIND YOU

Chapter 3

Leia had been very nervous about approaching Jabba, but the electronic voice modifier, and the fact that the real Boushh had not been much taller than she was[,] gave her some sense of security. If his garments hadn't fit, it would have been obvious that she was an impostor.

In the end, she'd accepted the bounty that Jabba had offered on Chewbacca, who'd been warned ahead of time by Lando that Boushh was, in fact, Leia, and not to worry.

_I must be crazy, _she thought to herself. Of all the things she'd envisioned herself doing in life, abandoning her responsibilities to the Rebellion and going off after a lover was the last thing she had expected to have happen.

Days and nights had been spent longing for Han in a way that had previously eluded her. She missed his kisses, his tender touch, and his powerful sexuality to a degree that when she was younger she would have been embarrassed about it. But those days were gone forever. Their lively banter and sarcastic remarks were missing from her life, too, and she would do whatever was needed to regain them as well.

She'd been a young girl when she and Han first met, but it was Han Solo who had helped her become a grown woman. Leia realized that what she'd wanted was a real man. Han was full of boyish behaviors, but when it came to the things that mattered, he was no child.

Leia knew that had it been she who'd been captured by anyone or anything, Han would move the entire galaxy to find her. He deserved no less from her.

A small smile played on Leia's lips as she passed the corpulence of Jabba. She thought what would be amusing to do after she freed Han was to kill the creature. That would never happen, she thought, but maybe when Luke arrived, he could do it Force-style. She hoped he'd arrive soon.

Leia had actually found it rather perversely fun to taunt the huge, slimy lizard. It may have been nerve-wracking, but there was entertainment value to it as well. And Jabba had been convinced that her fake thermal detonator was real, and her unwillingness to accept his initial offer had earned the bloated creature's respect. While being held in high esteem by the Hutt wasn't one of her lifetime goals, it had provided a chance for her to be nasty to one of the disgusting beings.

She crept silently towards the throne room. The place smelled hideous; the scent of intoxicants and various forms of substances that could be smoked mixed with the odors of vomit and blood gave the place a unique and disgusting aroma.

Leia just hoped that Jabba's army of spongers, bootlickers, whores, toadies and ne'er-do-wells were all sufficiently passed out that they wouldn't hear her. She was small and she could move quietly. Her biggest worry, however, was what kind of shape Han would be in. She'd read about hibernation sickness. It was rarely fatal, and didn't cause permanent disabilities, but there was a small percentage of those who died or did not recover. She was counting on the odds this time. Even Han, who always said, 'never tell me the odds,'couldn't balk at that.

Finally, she reached the wall where Han was located. Taking a quick glimpse around the throne room, she concluded that if she worked fast enough, and quietly enough, she should be able to get Han safely thawed and out of the palace.

Leia crept over to the wall that held Jabba's 'favorite decoration.' She had to stand on tiptoe to reach the controls. She studied them carefully; she couldn't afford to be wrong about this and and studied the controls carefully. With her heart racing and palms sweating inside the bounty hunter gloves, she gently touched the first control. A low humming began, which sounded to her like the engines of the Falcon roaring to life. She felt her heart in her throat and her stomach clutch. She prayed no one could hear the noise.

Finally, after a few tense moments, she could see the carbonite starting to melt. Han's large hands were visible and tightly clenched. His facial features, frozen in pain for so long, began to become flesh. She saw the stains on his clothing, and his hair was slicked back and wet. Finally, Han tumbled to the floor. Unfortunately, he wasn't a lightweight and she couldn't break his fall, but instead Leia hurried down to the floor to hold him. He looked a fright, and he was sweating profusely. But she'd never seen anything she'd ever wanted more.

She had found him.

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The next two days were among the most horrible of Leia's, Han's and Luke's lives. Luke doing battle with a rancor had rattled him more than he'd cared to admit, and Leia as Jabba's slave had been one of the worst humiliations she'd ever been forced to endure. Fortunately, Luke had learned a lot with regards to being a Jedi knight, and had engineered their successful escape.

Luke, however, was not going to rendezvous with the fleet immediately, but promised to join them soon.

It was there that Leia thanked Lando and assured him that there were no hard feelings. Lando had taken more than one terrible risk to find Han. She did, however, say no to playing cards with him.

Lando and Chewie were piloting the _Falcon_. Han balked, saying his eyesight had completely returned, but Leia had given him her best 'don't-screw-with me' look when she'd ordered him to rest. Lando and Chewie chuckled as she led Han to his bunk. She shot them a glance that read 'shut up or you'll be as dead as Jabba.' They had learned better than to argue with her.

He and Leia had taken a long water shower together, as Leia was concerned that Han's exhaustion might cause him to fall. That task accomplished, Leia tucked him into the bunk that was once his, and was now theirs.

Han smiled at Leia as she tucked him gently in. "You're incredible, you know. I mean, how many women kill a Hutt for their guy?"

Leia laughed. "I wasn't sure I could do it, but I wasn't going anywhere without getting a shot at that hideous mound of a creature."

"You looked like you enjoyed it," Han said, taking her hand in his.

"It wasn't fun doing it, but it was very satisfying," she admitted.

"Wish I'd been able to see that." Han's lids were fluttering from exhaustion. "And what was that thing you were wearing on the sail barge?"

"Nothing I'm ever going to put on again," Leia said, laughing softly.

"No fair!" Han protested. His expression was then serious. "I don't know what I did to deserve this, you coming after me."

Leia chuckled. "Just know this: no matter where you are, I will find you. Now get some rest."


End file.
